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Head college basketball coaches have high salaries in NCAA’s D1 programs. In addition to their base salaries, coaches often receive additional compensation for bonuses, endorsements, and other incentives. Many coaches also receive additional income from television and radio shows, as well as speaking engagements.
At the lower end of the pay scale, many D1 head coaches make between $150,000 and $400,000 annually. I’d estimate that there are at least 75 of them that make over $1 million per year. Division II and III coaches typically make far less, with salaries ranging from $50,000 to $100,000.
The salaries of individual coaches vary widely depending on their level of success, the size of their program, and the resources available to them. Not all of their salaries are reported. Private institutions and recent deals might be missing from the list.
You’ll notice that teams with the best odds to win the NCAA tournament have coaches that make a lot of money. If a guy wants to move his name up on the list below, he better take his team on a deep run and get the fanbase excited.
College Basketball Coach Salary: List of Highest Paid in Division I
Rank
Coach
Team
Salary
Conf.
1
John Calipari
Kentucky
$8,533,000
SEC
2
Bill Self
Kansas
$5,964,000
Big 12
3
Tom Izzo
Michigan St
$5,739,000
Big Ten
4
Rick Barnes
Tennessee
$5,450,000
SEC
5
Bruce Pearl
Auburn
$5,449,000
SEC
6
Chris Beard
Texas
$5,005,000
Big 12
7
Tony Bennett
Virginia
$4,830,000
ACC
8
Brad Underwood
Illinois
$4,601,000
Big Ten
9
Bob Huggins
West Virginia
$4,150,000
Big 12
10
Mick Cronin
UCLA
$4,100,000
Pac-12
11
Eric Musselman
Arkansas
$4,100,000
SEC
12
Buzz Williams
Texas A&M
$4,100,000
SEC
13
Dana Altman
Oregon
$4,010,000
Pac-12
14
Tommy Lloyd
Arizona
$4,000,000
Pac-12
15
Kevin Willard
Maryland
$3,900,000
Big Ten
16
Ed Cooley
Providence
$3,751,000
Big East
17
Scott Drew
Baylor
$3,707,000
Big 12
18
Greg Gard
Wisconsin
$3,638,000
Big Ten
19
Juwan Howard
Michigan
$3,616,000
Big Ten
20
Jeff Capel
Pittsburgh
$3,615,000
ACC
21
Matt Painter
Purdue
$3,580,000
Big Ten
22
Jamie Dixon
Texas Christian
$3,512,000
Big 12
23
Andy Enfield
Southern California
$3,511,000
Pac-12
24
Chris Holtmann
Ohio St.
$3,500,000
Big Ten
25
Kenny Payne
Louisville
$3,494,000
ACC
26
Nate Oats
Alabama
$3,419,000
SEC
27
Michael White
Georgia
$3,405,000
SEC
28
Fred Hoiberg
Nebraska
$3,250,000
Big Ten
29
Fran McCaffery
Iowa
$3,208,000
Big Ten
30
Kelvin Sampson
Houston
$3,200,000
AAC
31
Kermit Davis
Mississippi
$3,152,000
SEC
32
Jerry Stackhouse
Vanderbilt
$3,138,000
SEC
33
Mark Adams
Texas Tech
$3,108,000
Big 12
34
Todd Golden
Florida
$3,100,000
SEC
35
Mike Woodson
Indiana
$3,075,000
Big Ten
36
Matt McMahon
Louisiana State
$3,035,000
SEC
37
Mike Hopkins
Washington
$3,015,000
Pac-12
38
Mike Boynton
Oklahoma State
$3,000,000
Big 12
39
Steve Pikiell
Rutgers
$3,000,000
Big Ten
40
Chris Collins
Northwestern
$2,893,000
Big Ten
41
Kevin Keatts
NC State
$2,804,000
ACC
42
Porter Moser
Oklahoma
$2,800,000
Big 12
43
Brad Brownell
Clemson
$2,771,000
ACC
44
Wayne Tinkle
Oregon St.
$2,674,000
Pac-12
45
Bobby Hurley
Arizona State
$2,610,000
Pac-12
46
Josh Pastner
Georgia Tech
$2,602,000
ACC
47
Jim Boeheim
Syracuse
$2,583,000
ACC
48
Jim Larranaga
Miami-Florida
$2,563,000
ACC
49
Mike Brey
Notre Dame
$2,501,000
ACC
50
Mike Young
Virginia Tech
$2,500,000
ACC
51
Dennis Gates
Missouri
$2,500,000
SEC
52
Hubert Davis
North Carolina
$2,450,000
ACC
53
Tad Boyle
Colorado
$2,425,000
Pac-12
54
Chris Jans
Mississippi State
$2,400,000
SEC
55
Leonard Hamilton
Florida State
$2,250,000
ACC
56
Lamont Paris
South Carolina
$2,200,000
SEC
57
Greg McDermott
Creighton
$2,143,000
Big East
58
Jerome Tang
Kansas State
$2,100,000
Big 12
59
Ben Johnson
Minnesota
$2,009,000
Big Ten
60
T.J. Otzelberger
Iowa State
$2,000,000
Big 12
61
Craig Smith
Utah
$1,950,000
Pac-12
62
Mark Few
Gonzaga
$1,878,000
WCC
63
Mark Fox
California
$1,725,000
Pac-12
64
Mike Rhoades
VCU
$1,723,000
ATL 10
65
Wes Miller
Cincinnati
$1,581,000
AAC
66
Kyle Smith
Washington St.
$1,500,000
Pac-12
67
Brian Dutcher
San Diego St.
$1,353,000
MWC
68
Steve Alford
Nevada
$1,225,000
MWC
69
Steve Forbes
Wake Forest
$1,114,000
ACC
70
Isaac Brown
Wichita St.
$1,003,000
AAC
71
Randy Bennett
St. Mary’s
$948,000
WCC
72
Rick Pitino
Iona
$612,000
MAAC
73
Steve Prohm
Murray St.
$520,000
MVC
74
Jonas Hayes
Georgia St
$506,000
S-Belt
75
Matt Langel
Colgate
$482,000
Patriot
76
John Becker
Vermont
$365,000
AM East
77
LeVelle Moton
North Carolina Central
$355,000
MEAC
78
Greg Heiar
New Mexico St.
$300,000
WAC
79
Eric Henderson
South Dakota State
$300,000
Summit
80
Johnny Jones
Texas Southern
$275,000
SWAC
Average CBB Head Coaching Salaries by Conference
While Mid-Major gigs pay pretty well, it’s a really good job if you can get the head coaching position in one of the bigger conferences. Below you will see the average salary for each conference. At the end of the day, almost no matter where you are at you are going to be in a high tax bracket if you can get the top job.
Conf.
Total Pay
AAC
1,928,000
ACC
2,775,153
AM East
365,000
ATL 10
1,723,000
Big 12
3,534,600
Big East
2,947,000
Big Ten
3,539,153
MAAC
612,000
MEAC
355,000
MVC
520,000
MWC
1,289,000
Pac-12
2,865,454
Patriot
482,000
S-Belt
506,000
SEC
3,855,785
SWAC
275,000
Summit
300,000
WAC
300,000
WCC
1,413,000
Why Do Men’s D1 NCAAB Coaches Make So Much Money Each Year?
You might be shocked at how much some of these guys make, but just remember how much money a basketball program can generate for a school. A good team gets 20+ home games drawing 10,000 plus in attendance, buying tickets, paying for parking, and then emptying out the concession stands. A bad team sees the seats half-empty. Even average teams can afford millions of dollars to the coaching staff.
It’s no surprise that the top conferences like the ACC, SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and Pac-12 litter the top of the list. They have the biggest arenas and generate the most revenue. Mid-majors though get addicted to winning, and they will do the best they can to hold on to someone who gives them hope of going to the tournament and competing every year.
And NCAA Tournament appearances and success are big money makers for conferences and schools. You get a lot of media recognition if you can make a run in the dance, giving your school more exposure. Winning in March definitely has its perks!
Jimmy Boyd in 
